Keating prefers dialog path to rights solution
JAKARTA (JP): Australia will not adopt a foreign policy of shunning its neighbors in an effort to advance human rights in the region, but will follow a path of dialog and confidence building.
Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating strongly advocated this approach in Brisbane on Wednesday during a speech in which he argued that confrontational tactics were less effective than diplomatic dialog.
"We will get much further in advancing human rights by talking to our neighbors than by shunning them," Keating said while addressing the Asia-Australia Institute.
He contended that Australia's approach of making human rights part of a broad based relationship would be more fruitful and allow a free and open discussion about each nation's individual differences.
Keating said Australia's neighbors often subscribe to a different standards in their application of human rights.
He explained that the variables may arise out of the many levels of political and economic development, or could come from the belief that the good of society at large is more important than the rights of the individual.
However, Keating acknowledged that sometimes there was an obvious abuse of human rights, which is a drawback by any standards.
"Picking our way through this moral thicket is one of the most difficult things we have to do," he said in a speech obtained by The Jakarta Post yesterday.
Despite adopting a softer approach to the human rights issue, Keating directed stern words at doubters questioning Australia's commitment to this issue.
"This sense of human rights is intrinsic in our sense of ourselves," he remarked.
The prime minister noted that there can be no argument whatsoever on accepting the universality of human rights, but the difficult task is "deciding how to apply our own beliefs in the international arena."
The government of Paul Keating has often come under severe criticism both at home and from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) abroad for his lax approach in dealing with alleged human rights abuses to by his neighbors to the north.
Condemned
Many have condemned Keating's approach as sacrificing human rights for the sake of Australia's commercial and security ties with his Asian neighbors.
Though Keating did not identify specific countries in his discussion of human rights, he did make it a point of mentioning the importance of Indonesia to his country.
"In Southeast Asia, our core relationship is with Indonesia. As I have said many times, no country is more important to us," Keating said while expressing his satisfaction at the broadening of relations in the past couple of years.
The prime minister further touted relations between the two countries when he said, "neither Australia nor Indonesia has designs on the other and our strategic interests in the broader region are similar." (mds)